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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: vault · stem · cold · content · bulb · jam · nail · date

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. content — the amount
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. cold — not warm
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. content — happy
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. stem — to come from
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. bulb — for light
  16. date — the fruit
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. bulb — for light
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. cold — an illness
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. vault — a safe
  24. jam — in traffic

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com